My work is influenced by French Impressionism and Early California artists. I have been painting for 15 years and my style can be described as bright, chromatic palette with "loose" painterly brush work. I received my education in Russia but I have also have taken advanced classes and workshops with nationally renowned artist such as Ovanes Berberian. Ray Robers, Jim Wodark and others.

My Story

Visions and feelings of being out or near the sea fill my memories of my childhood. I grew up on the largest island off the east coast of Russia; the island of Sakhalin. My father was a sailor, leading cargo ships on trade routes around the world. Sometimes he would take my family on short trips around the continent. For a three year old child, these were unforgettable adventures and I was always excited and looking forward to the next trip.

The coast and the sea were what made me feel at home when, in 1996, I moved to California. I fell in love with this land. I often go to paint near the sea by the Monterey Peninsula and Carmel, where so many great artists found inspiration; Franz Bishoff (1864-1929) and William Ritschel (1864-1949) among others. My work has been greatly influenced by these early, great California artists, and they have opened my eyes to the possibilities of color.

The ever changing mood and mystery of the ocean inspires me with its color and flickering light reflections. My collectors often comment, when looking at my paintings, that they are drawn to those qualities in the paintings.